Another mode of gambling is that called Koo-yan or " the Ancients." It is also known under the name of "Flowery Characters." This game is said to have originated in the department of Chun-chow, and was introduced into Canton in the twenty-eighth year of the reign of Taou-kwang. By the " ancients " is meant a number of names and surnames by which thirty-six personages of former times w^ere known and recognized. These names are divided into nine different classes, as follows : —

I. The names of four men who attained the highest literary distinctions.
In a former state of existence, these men were respectively, a fish, a white goose, a white snail, and a peacock.
II. The names of five distinguished military officers.
These men were once, respectively, a worm, a rabbit, a pig, a tiger, and a cow.
III. The names of seven successful merchants.
These men were once, respectively, a flying dragon, a white dog, a white horse, an elephant, a wild cat, and a wasp.
IV. The names of four persons who were conspicuous for their uninterrupted happiness on earth.
These were once, respectively, a frog, an eagle, a monkey, and a dragon.
V. The names of four females.
These were once, respectively, a butterfly, a precious stone, a white swallow, and a pigeon.
VI. The names of live beggars.
These were once, respectively, a prawn, a snake, a fish, a deer, and a sheep.
VII. The names of four Buddhist priests.
These were once, respectively, a tortoise, a hen, an elk, and a calf.
VIII. The names of two Taouist priests.
These were once, respectively, a white egret and a yellow streaked cat.
IX. The name of a Buddhist nun who was once a fox.

The game is played as follows. The gambling company select a person who has an aptitude for composing enigmas, to whom they pay a veiy large salary. New enigmas are constantly wanted, as tlie houses where this game is played are open twice daily, namely, at 7 A.M., and again at 8 p.m.
Each enigma is supposed to have a reference to one of the creatures enumerated, whether beast, bird, fish, reptile, or insect. So soon as an enigma is com])osed, it is printed, and several thousand copies are sold to the people. The sale of these enigmas must prove in itself a considerable source of revenue. When a purchaser of one of them thinks he has found out the creature to which it refers, he writes his answer on a sheet of paper. At the hour appointed he hastens to the gaming-house, generally a large hall, where he presents his answer, and the sum of money which he is prepared to stake, to a secretary. When all the answers and stakes have been received, the managers of the establishment retire to an inner chamber, where they examine the answers and count the stakes.
The secretary records the names of those who have answered correctly, while his partners wrap up the various sums of money which the successful conjecturers have won.
All this time there is suspended from the roof of the chamber where the speculators are assembled, a scroll folded up, and containing a picture of the creature to which the enigma alludes.
When the winners' stakes have been prepared for them, the secretary enters the hall and unfolds this scroll.
So soon as the picture is seen, it is greeted with a loud shout of exultation from the successful few, and with murmurs of discontent from the many who liave guessed wrong.
It is hardly necessary to add that the managers take care to provide riddles of sucli an ambiguous character, that the majority are always wrong in their conjectures.
The amount staked in these places is limited. Ladies lose large sums of money at such establishments. As they are not allowed to appear in public, they are generally represented at them by their female slaves or servants.
Large sums are daily lost by men, women, and children of all classes, in a game called Ta-pak-up-pu, or "strike the white dove."
A company is formed, consisting of fifty partners having equal shares. One is selected to act as an overseer, and, for reasons which will presently appear, he is made to live in strict retirement.
A sheet of paper on which eighty Chinese characters, respectiv'ely signifying heaven, earth, sun, moon, stars, &c., is given to him
With this sheet he enters a private apartment, and remains there without communicating with any one for several hours, during which he marks twenty of the characters with a vermilion pencil.
The sheet is then deposited in a box, which is at once carefully locked. Thousands of sheets of paper containing eighty similar characters, are then sold to the public.
The purcliasers mark ten of the eighty, and take tlieir papers next morning to the gaming establishment to have them compared with that marked by the overseer. Before they give them up, they make copies of them, which they retain.
When all the papers have been received, the box which contains the overseer's paper, and which stands conspicuous on a table, is unlocked.
The gambler's papers are then compared with the overseer's paper.
If a gambler has marked only four of the characters selected by the overseer, he receives nothing.
If he has marked five of them, he receives seven cash ; if six, seventy cash ; if eight, seven dollars ; and if ten, fifteen dollars.
A person wishing to gamble can buy as many as three hundred copies of the gambling sheet, but he must mark them all alike.
There are never more than two such establishments in large cities such as Canton, and the winnings of the firms conducting them must be very great, to judge from the number of sheets sold daily.

In cities, there are also houses in which card-playing for very high stakes takes place both by day and night. Many persons are there brought to ruin. To elude the vigilance of the authorities these establishments are more or less private ; but card-players experience little or no difficulty in finding out such haunts of vice. A private residence was used for this purpose in the neighbourhood of a Chinese house in which I resided for six years. I was induced to visit it on one occasion, and found in it gentlemen card-players with several female companions. The latter were not engaged in the game,as it is altogether contrary to Cantonese notions of propriety that women should play cards with men. In the cities of Nankin and Kam-poo-sheng, I saw to my astonishment men and women playing together, and on making inquiries I found that a similar custom prevails at Shanghai. Cards are a very popular amusement with all classes.

There are several kinds of street gambling, on a small scale, for money or for sweetmeats, candies, etc., which it is impossible to avoid noticing while passing along. One of these is a kind of literary or "poetica" gambling.

The head gambler provides himself with a table, and seats himself behind it by the street-side. He exhibits on the table, for the inspection of those who wish to gamble in this way, a written line of poetry of five or seven characters, having one word omitted. He furnishes, also, a list of several words, either one of which, if inserted in the blank place, would complete the line and make good sense. The gambling consists in guessing which of these characters is the word really omitted, and backing the guess with a stake of cash. He who stakes a number of cash on his guess and misses, loses the money. If he guesses the correct character, he receives five times his stake. That there may be no imposition practiced by the head gambler, the real word omitted is found on the corner or side of the same piece of paper which contains the defective line, but concealed from view by the paper being turned over, until a wager is made by some one, when it is exposed for the inspection of the person concerned. The head gambler provides himself sometimes with a large number of defective lines of poetry ready for use, should there be any occasion for them.

Another method of gambling is this : the head gambler provides himself with three slender slips of bamboo or wood, eight or ten inches long, and a stool, and seats himself by the street-side, to accommodate those who wish to try their fortunes by an appeal to the three lots. He hold the three lots in one hand by grasping them at one end, the other end projecting outward, and usually separated from each other, so that those who engage in gambling can easily slip cash on any one of them which he selects. There is hanging down from his hand a red tassel or string, professedly attached to one of the three lots at the end which is held in the hand of the operator. He holds the three ends in such a way that a spectator can not tell which of them it is that has the red thread attached to it. The person who ventures to stake cash, places the amount he pleases on the lot which he bets is the one which has the red string attached to it. If the lot selected is not the one which has a string attached, he simply loses his venture. If it should prove to be the one, the head gambler must restore him the cash, and twice as many more as he ventured. It is very seldom that the head gambler forfeits any money. He usually manages the matter so as almost always to gain, not to lose. The red string is often attached to them all, but in such a way that when any one is pulled forth from the hand which grasps it, the thread will slip off, but remain on the other two. If there is a wager laid on one of the two left undrawn, and the lot selected be pulled forth, the thread in like manner slips off, and the lot appears without any thread attached, even though it really had the thread attached to it before it was drawn. If the head gambler opens the hand to show that every thing has been conducted fairly, the remaining slip has the thread properly attached, and every thing seems to be honestly managed. Of course, the man who operates deceitfully and unfairly does not allow the condition of the string on the ends of the lots in his hand to be seen or examined at the beginning of a game, should any one suspect or charge him with intending foul play.

Another common instrument of street-gambling consists in part of a round board some fifteen or eighteen inches in diameter, the circumference of which is divided into eight or sixteen equal parts. From the centre to each of the dividing points is drawn a straight line. A standard or post eight or ten inches high is erected in the centre, coming to a point small enough to allow of cash being put upon it. A slender stick of wood is provided, nearly as long as the diameter of the board, having a smooth hole in the centre of it saffidently large to allow it to fit loosely upon the perpendicular standard, two or three inches from the top of it. This is designed to be put upon the standard, and to turn around easily, and with as little friction as possible, upon this standard, in a line parallel with the surface of the board, which is marked off into eight or six-teen parts. Near one end of this horizontal piece is tied one end of a string, so that its other end will come down nearly to the surface of the board. This horizontal piece of wood, being turned around by a sudden movement of the hand, will continue to revolve some time after the hand has been taken away, and, of course, it is quite uncertain over what part of the face of the board the thread attached to it will finally stop. The gambling consists in guessing where the string will point after the horizontal piece to which it is attached having been made to revolve, stops. The one who wishes to stake some cash upon a certain spot places the amount of his wager on the top of the perpendicular standard, and specifies the particular division he bets upon, or he puts the cash upon that particular division, and then gives the horizontal piece a whirl around with greater or less velocity, as he pleases. If the thread stops, pointing down to the particular division he selected, he has won, and the head gambler must pay him eight or sixteen times as much as he ventured, according as the face of the board is divided into eight or sixteen parts. If the thread stops over any other space than the one he bet upon, he loses his wager. If he should bet upon any particular dividing line on the face of the board, and the string should, when its movements ceased, point directly down toward that line, he would be entitled to receive twice as many cash from the head gambler as he would have been entitled to receive had he bet with success upon any particular piece. The head gambler often has a quantity of candies or sweetmeats with which to pay in part or wholly his forfeits, provided those who are successful in their ventures are willing to accept of such a currency ; if not, he must pay them in cash.

...

Lotteries are also prohibited, in consequence of their exceedingly pernicious influence on society. Mandarins are anxious to prevent them, and succeed only by the use of the most stringent measures. A few years since, the head man of a certain lottery was arrested and beheaded by order of the viceroy, which decisive course struck terror into all who were engaged, or who were desirous of engaging in the business. The secret in regard to this consists in guessing which set, out of certain thirty-seven sets of names, is the successful one for a particular day. The set selected as the successful one for any specified day is, of course, known only to the managers of the lottery. Those who happen to guess it draw thirty cash for every one they stake. This great percentage of profit induces many to engage in this kind of lottery.

...

Ta Chieng Kui a god of gamblers, represents a certain man who spent his time in gambling, until, having lost his property, he died of want. An image of him was subsequently made, and called a "devil gambling for cash". His body was represented as clothed with ordinary garments, very much dilapidated, with his cue coiled around his head, and with a gambling card stuck into his hair. This god is much worshiped by gamblers, especially when there is a kind of lottery to be drawn. Having lighted incense and candles before him, they cast lots by the use of bamboo slips, and kneel down and knock their heads on the ground. Some confirmed gamblers have an image of this divinity made for use in their homes, before which they pray for auspicious dreams, as aids in gambling. They prepare for having such dreams by lying down to sleep before the image, having first lighted some candles and incense. When this is done it amounts to a kind of vow. Sometimes tobacco and cakes are offered in the evening.

Sometimes the gambler takes thirty-seven 'slips of bamboo, each of which has certain characters written upon it, and arranges them before the image, covering each with some kind of shell. Incense and candles are lighted, as before, at bedtime. In the morning these slips are carefully examined to ascertain if any have been moved during the night. If one has been stirred, though but a little, the characters upon it are selected by the gambler, upon which to bet with regard to this lottery, under the idea that the god has caused it to be moved as a favor to him, indicating that these characters will be the lucky ones for the day. One of these thirty-seven sets of characters are selected by the lottery directors to draw the prize for a particular day. The gambling consists in trying to guess the lucky characters for any specified day. Those who guess them make thirty fold on their venture. Oflentimes the phrase "devil gambling for cash" is used to describe a man who has become a desperate gamester, probably from his haggard and poverty-stricken appearance.

Canton est la province de Chine la plus célèbre par ses grandes fermes de jeux. On connait en particulier sa fameuse "Loterie des lauréats aux examens", 闈姓 Wei-Sing, que le gouvernement s'est decidé à reconnaïtre, faute d'avoir pu la supprimer ⁽²⁾. Aujourd'hui les redevances des jeux entrent pour une part considérable dans les revenus de la province; voici les redevances payées l'an dernier par les diverses fermes :

1° 大闈姓 Ta Wei-Sing "Grand Wei-sing", 322.683 taëls;

2° 小闈姓 Siao Wei-Sing "Petit Wei-sing", ou 白鴿票 Pai-ko-p'iao, "Billets du Pigeon blanc" ⁽³⁾, 705.642 taëls;

3° 基舖山票 Ki-p'ou-chan-p'iao ⁽⁴⁾, 274.728 taëls;

彩票 Ts'ai-p'iao, "Billets de loterie" ⁽⁵⁾, 92.880 taëls;

soit au total 1.395.934 taëls, plus de 4 millions de francs.

⁽²⁾ Sur le Wei-Sing, cf. surtout la très bonne monographie de G.T. Hare, The Wai Seng lottery, Public. of the Str. Br. R. As. Soc., n°1, Singapore, 1895, 124 pp. Pour les tentatives de suppression du Wai-Sing, cf aussi Cordier, Hist. des Relat. de la Chine, II, 24; Boulger, The History of China, ed de 1898, II, 475.

⁽³⁾ Le jeu du "Pigeon blanc" est plus ancien à Canton que le véritable Wei-Sing. Le principe en est sensiblement le même; au lieu de deviner le plus possible de noms de famille des lauréats aux examens, il faut deviner le plus possible des caractères gagnants parmi 80 caracterès que le fermier choisit dans l'un des classiques. Cf. Hare, loc. laud., p. 4. On voit que le "Pigeon blanc" donne aujourd'hui un revenu double du Wei-Sing.

⁽⁴⁾ Nous n'avons pas de renseignements sur ce jeu.

⁽⁵⁾ Ceci est la loterie pure et simple. Naguère, la seule qui eût quelque faveur en Chine était la loterie de Manille, supprimée depuis la guerre Hispano-américaine. On songea à lancer depuis à Changhai une loterie francaise, dont les bénéfices eussent servi à subventionner des entreprises d'instruction; le ministère ne crut pas que notre legislation permit d'exécuter ce projet. L'idée en même temps était venue aux Chinois, et des loteries furent annoncées un peu partout. Comme c'était une source assurée de revenus, certains gouverneurs de province, entre autres le vice-roi du Tche-li, établirent une loterie officielle de province, avec défense de vendre ou d'acheter les billets de loterie privées.